Review: Manor Golf Club (Part 2)

It's time to check out the back nine at Manor, go here to see the front.

The landscape at Manor takes a significant turn for the rugged on the back nine, as immediately evidenced by the tenth hole. The tee shot on this 155-yard par 3 must carry a 100-yard-wide ravine to reach the green, which is perched on a small finger of land that falls away on all sides. There's a single bunker right (which functions more to catch golf balls from bounding into the trees than as an actual hazard), and the green slopes from front to back. There's also a little knob in the center to make the task of putting that extra bit more difficult.

The tenth hole.

The tenth green.

The eleventh hole is just under 300 yards, but it is very distinctly not a drivable par 4. The hole crosses over a ravine to a fairway that bends hard right along the side of the opposing hill. Trees block the direct route to the green, so unless you've got a big high cut in your arsenal, you'll be using a long iron or fairway wood on the tee. Of course, you still need to think about where you're aiming; you don't want to go through the fairway into the trees, but you also don't want to come up short. The second shot will be a little wedge with the ball ridiculously below your feet to a small but benign green with a big dropoff right. You can absolutely bail out left and have the ball bounce down onto the green, though, which is nice. Is this the most strategic hole in the world? No, of course not. But it's memorable and fun, and that's just as important.

The eleventh hole.

The eleventh green.

The twelfth hole is a 405-yard par 5. Yes, you read that correctly. It does play nearly 100 feet uphill, so while it is still incredibly short, it's not quite the pushover you'd think. The fairway is wide and heavily sloped, but trees do narrow the playing corridor right about where a good drive would end up. The second shot is massively uphill and basically blind, though the only hazards (a pair of bunkers) are at the green itself, so if you are laying up, you have a green light. The green is tilted from right to left, though, so you are better off approaching from the left side. If this was a par 4, it would be very difficult, but as a par 5, you've got a good chance of making birdie.

The twelfth hole.

The twelfth green.

Looking back down the twelfth fairway.

The thirteenth hole is 190 yards, and I'll be honest, it's not the most exciting hole in the world. Minimal elevation, a not particularly exciting green, and while the bunker right and former bunker (now a grassy hollow) left do provide some challenge, overall the thirteenth represents a bit of a breather. 

The thirteenth hole.

The fourteenth hole, while not Manor's longest hole, is by far its most challenging. This 540-yard par 5 is draped along and around a large hill, with the sprawling fairway tilted hard from right to left, with the slope increasing the further left you go. Your eye is naturally drawn to the right, but trees cut in, completely blocking your second shot and forcing you to lay up more than 150 yards from the green. The further left you go on your tee shot, the closer you can get to the green. But even from position A, you still have to be careful; there's a small pond jutting in from left of the fairway about 50-100 yards from the green. It is extremely easy to go too far and end up in that hazard, particularly considering how steeply downhill the second shot is. Ultimately, even if you can lay up closer than 100 yards, it's probably smart not to.

While the green complex is significantly propped up, with big dropoffs left and long, the green itself is mercifully simple. No big breaks, and sloped gently from back to front. Frankly, if you can get yourself a birdie putt on this hole, you've earned a respite. This is an absolutely brutal par 5, one where you have to carefully think and execute on every shot. It's pretty easily the best hole on the course.

The fourteenth hole.

Approaching the fourteenth green.

The fourteenth green.

We go directly from a long and very tough par 5 to the shortest hole on the course. The fifteenth hole is just 90 yards, but it's one of those classic "hit the green or suffer" short par 3s. Miss short and you'll have a pitch from an incredibly crooked stance. Miss long and you'll have an equally awkward stance, only this time the green is running away from you. Same with missing in the greenside bunker right. You're either walking away with an easy par or birdie, or you're working to make double.

The fifteenth hole.

The sixteenth hole is a 280-yard par 4, making it distinctly drivable for longer hitters. There is a complication, however, in the form of a large tree directly in line between the tee and green. Obviously, the safe play is a long iron out to the right; the slope will help contain golf balls, bouncing them back into the semi-blind fairway. But if you're feeling bold, you can always curve a driver around the tree. A fade is probably easier (and requires a bit less curving), but does mean you're aiming directly at the next tee. A big hook is the more polite choice.

Anyway, if you've played safely, you'll have a little three-quarter wedge to a small green flanked by two bunkers. In a move Manor pulls multiple times, there's a little mound in the center of the green to make cross-green putts and chips a little tricky. Still, this is a great opportunity to make a birdie.

The sixteenth hole.

The sixteenth green.

The seventeenth hole is 330 yards, and plays straight ahead to a semi-blind fairway tilted from left to right. It is wide open, but if you want to use driver, you should favor the left side. Because of the slope of the fairway and trees coming in, the right side can run out of space very quickly. A fairway wood or long iron will leave you with a full wedge to a green perched on the corner of a ravine, with steep dropoffs right and long. 

The seventeenth hole.

Approaching the seventeenth green.

The eighteenth hole is quite similar to the tenth in many ways: It's about the same length (160 yards) and plays over the same ravine. Unlike the tenth, though, this green is tough. It's small and there's a ridge cutting the back half into two. Find the wrong part of the green, and you'll likely have a putt that's impossible to make. It's very easy to three putt this green. It's a simple but stern way to end the round.

The eighteenth hole.

The eighteenth green.

I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised by what Manor offered. I knew going in it would be short and a bit quirky, but I wasn't expecting so many really interesting greens. The stretch from five to seven especially, as well as the eighteenth, are extremely good, plus there are several others that demand the golfer's focus. If they were expanded a bit more to fill the full green pads, Manor would really be onto something.

The only real big thing I have in terms of problems is some of the par 4s on the front nine (plus the ninth) really blend into each other and can play a bit same-y. That changes on the back nine, with the fourteenth being a particular highlight. Naturally, the more standard nine — the par 36 playing over 3,000 yards — is much less interesting than the short, quirky back nine that doesn't even reach 2,500 yards.

Value wise, Manor does quite well. Of course, I got a $10 discount, but even without that, it's less than $40 to walk on a weekend afternoon. The most you could pay (weekend morning, taking a cart) is $55. And for 2026 and a course this fun, that's really not too bad. If it were a little closer, I'd gladly play here again, but even with the hour-plus drive, Manor was well worth my time.

Review: Manor Golf Club (Part 1)

Years and years ago, a big motivator for driving more than 2 hours out to Galen Hall was this article detailing some of Philadelphia's best public golf courses. And despite living nowhere near Philadelphia, I've ended up playing most of the courses on that list. Jeffersonville and Paxon Hollow? Great courses. Glens Mills and Inniscrone? Not so much.  

Now that I'm actually living in Philadelphia, it's time to revisit the list and hopefully finish it off. Lulu is fully private and Cobbs Creek is currently undergoing a massive restoration, so those will have to wait. Manor Golf Club, located in the foothills outside Reading (and just a few miles from Galen Hall), on the other hand, was very readily available — even if I did have to babysit a group of teenagers to do it. (I'm not joking. I did at least get a discount for my trouble.)

Designed by Alexander Findlay in 1928, Manor Golf Club is hardly the sort of place to challenge the professionals. It's longer than Walnut Lane, but not by much: Manor is less than 5,500 yards from the back tees. But it traverses some very severe and hilly land, and the photos I've seen promise a fun, quirky experience. So, let's see if Manor can deliver.

The first hole is a par 4 of thoroughly modest length, playing just 250 yards from the tips. It is uphill the whole way, so not a huge number of people will have the length to reach it. The fairway is pretty wide and there aren't any hazards, so there's no real incentive to not use driver and get as close as you can to the green, which is tucked into a little punchbowl. Frankly, this isn't a very interesting hole beyond the elevation change, though it does give you a great chance to open with a birdie.

The first hole.

The first green.

The second hole is a 200-yard par 3 that plays right back down the hill the first hole climbs up. The green here is absolutely miniscule and slopes a surprising amount from back left to front right. There's also a fairly large bunker just left, so if you can hit a draw into this green, that will benefit you greatly. This is a much better hole than the first, though I think a slightly bigger green would help it out; it's pretty unforgiving as is.

The second hole.

The second green.

The third hole is 340 yards, which honestly puts it on the longer side for Manor — there are only two par 4s here over 350 yards. Similar to the first hole, the third plays uphill, with the second shot being dramatically uphill to a mostly blind green. Get used to this format, Manor uses it multiple times throughout the front nine. Also like the first, the third green is carved into a semi-punchbowl, which makes missing right much better than left.

The third hole.

The third green.

The fourth hole is 325 yards and plays steeply downhill; the fairway here is quite narrow, squeezed between trees on both sides. The hole bends hard left about 225 yards out, which means all you need to set up a wedge second shot is a long iron. Of course, you can try to draw a driver around the left trees, but they are quite tall and there is no playing out of the middle of them. The green here is pretty modest, though there is a bunker left (and a grassy pit where a bunker used to be to the right). I don't know if I'd quite classify this hole as good, but it is memorable and a bit quirky.

The fourth hole.

The fourth green.

The fifth hole is the longest par 4 at Manor, playing all of 390 yards. Initially, there doesn't seem to be too much here; the only significant features are some big trees right and some earthworks cutting across the fairway at roughly the point where a good drive would end up. The approach, assuming you've hit a good drive, is a wedge or short iron to a blind green. So far, so average. But when you walk over the little ridge to the green, you're in for a surprise. While the fifth green isn't quite as small as the second, it's still quite tiny, and it falls away left, right, and long; there's also a central mound with ridges radiating off toward the back and to the right. No putt of significant length will be able to avoid dealing with that mound, and it's the same with all chip shots. It's a really fun green, and would surely be even better if the green were expanded to fully fill the built-up pad it occupies. 

The fifth hole.

The fifth green.

The sixth hole is a 360-yard par 4 with a tee cut back in the woods; the tee shot goes down and back up a valley and then around a massive tree just to the right of the fairway. Ideally, you want to play a little fade up the left side, getting as far up the hill as you can. Driver can take that big tree out of play, and will leave just a little wedge for the second shot. But then you have the green to worry about, and it's a challenge for one very good reason — it's tilted severely from front to back. Seriously, this is not a large green, but it still manages to fall away nearly two feet. And that's a lot. You have to be very deliberate and careful about where you land your approach. 

The sixth hole.

The sixth green.

The seventh hole is 275 yards and plays steeply downhill, which makes it very reachable in normal conditions (I faced a stiff headwind during my round, so I couldn't get close). There's a small pond left of the fairway about 200 yards out, so while you can lay up to the bottom of the hill, you're bringing the water into play by doing so. Going for the green does bring the twin bunkers about 15 yards short very much into play, but ultimately this hole's greatest defense is its green. It's two tiered and sloped sharply from back left to front right, with something like 3-4 feet of elevation change between the front and back section. That's a lot for any green, but it's especially noticeable here because the green is again very modest in size. Putting here is an extremely delicate operation, and even hitting the green with your tee shot is no guarantee of birdie.

The seventh hole.

The seventh green.

The eighth hole is 315 yards, and it's a bit similar to the third hole, if more open. There are a pair of former bunkers about 50 yards short of the green that do provide a little strategic interest, but they'd be much more effective if they still had sand in them. Right now, there's no reason not to use driver. A good drive should bring the green into view; the eighth green is also not one of Manor's best. Not a bad hole, but we've seen this trick already.

The eighth hole.

The eighth green.

The ninth hole is 550 yards, making it Manor's longest hole. The fairway here is extremely wide, but it's a little deceiving; obviously you can go wide right, but the hole bends left so you do want to favor the left side. Even so, this is a very easy tee shot. Same for the lay-up, as there are no hazards until you reach the green. There are bunkers left and long, and while it's not to the same scale as the fifth, there are definitely some strong internal contours within the green. It's not enough to rescue the ninth from being a slog, but it's better than nothing.

The ninth hole.

Approaching the ninth green.

The ninth green.

That's it for this week, next week we'll take a look at the back nine.

Review: Walnut Lane Golf Club (Part 2)

It's time to check out the back nine at Walnut Lane, go here to see the front.

The tenth hole is 340 yards and tumbles dramatically downhill. The hole bends slightly left and narrows as it descends, with dense forest encroaching on both sides. You can use driver here, but unless you have a reliable draw, there isn't much room for error. A long iron or fairway wood is plenty, and is probably preferable. The green here slopes from front to back and is cut off from the fairway by some rough and low mounding, making an aerial approach necessary. So while you can get within 50 yards of this green, the second shot will almost certainly not stop anywhere near the hole. The higher you can get that approach shot, the more likely you'll be able to stop it near the hole.

The tenth hole. It's a little tough to believe this is within Philadelphia city limits.

The tenth green.

The eleventh hole is 140 yards but plays dramatically uphill, with the green perched on the edge of a small cliff leading down into dense forest. Trees also overhang from the left; that left-hand hole location you see in the pictures was all but inaccessible for me with a pitching wedge in hand. Maybe some people can draw their wedges 15 yards, but I can't. The green at least is on the larger side and sloped from right to left. Just don't miss left, and you should be fine.

The eleventh hole.

The eleventh green.

The twelfth hole is 335 yards and wraps around forest and the same deep ravine from the previous hole. The fairway is tilted hard from right to left and climbs up and over a hill, then dips down before rising back up to the green, which is on its own isolated shelf. There's a big dropoff behind, and a very deep bunker to left. This is a really good hole, as you can play safely with a long iron out to the right, leaving yourself a fairly long and potentially semi-blind second, use a fairway wood to try and reach the highest, flattest part of the fairway, or bend a driver around the trees, catching the downslope and getting yourself within 50 yards of the green (albeit you'll have a tough, steeply uphill pitch shot). The green is sloped from back right to front left and has a mild false front (the grass is too long for balls to run fully down the hill, but the idea is there).

The twelfth hole.

The twelfth green.

The thirteenth hole is 135 yards, making it Walnut Lane's shortest hole. It's also kind of weird. It plays straight up a hill to a tiny green tucked between a pair of bunkers in front, the road behind and to the right, and forest left. The green is highest along the center line and falls away on either side. My big issue here is that the margin for error on the tee shot is just so small, even with the hole's modest length. The fence marking the OB line is less than 10 feet from the back edge of the green and the bunkers short necessitate a fully aerial approach. It's just not a comfortable tee shot.

The thirteenth green.

The thirteenth green.

The fourteenth hole is 160 yards and is a fine but pretty unremarkable par 3. It plays over relatively flat ground, the green is pretty flat, and the two bunkers on either side present a fair but pretty typical challenge. Nothing here to write home about.

The fourteenth hole.

The fourteenth green.

The fifteenth hole is a 340-yard par 4 that plays from a high tee down to a fairway that turns hard from left to right. OB in the form of a major road follows the same curve, which makes hitting driver a dangerous proposition. It is very easy to fly through the fairway into oncoming traffic. A long iron or fairway wood is much safer, and will still get you within wedge range. The approach is slightly uphill to a shallow, elevated green with two bunkers left.

The fifteenth hole.

The fifteenth green.

The sixteenth hole is 150 yards and plays gently downhill to the most well-bunkered green on the course. There are three bunkers long and one short left. In addition, this green is sloped hard from back to front, and is incredibly slippery, even if you're putting/chipping up the hill. Like the fourteenth, this hole isn't particularly revolutionary, but it's decent enough.

The sixteenth hole.

The seventeenth hole is a very long par 3, playing 235 yards through a narrow chute of trees to a large green. It does play downhill, which slightly mitigates the distance. Still, for a course this short it does feel a bit more like a short par 4. There's OB left, but beyond that, no real trouble other than overhanging trees.

The seventeenth hole.

The seventeenth green.

The eighteenth hole is 360 yards and plays to a blind fairway up on a plateau. The fairway is reasonably wide, which makes this a rare opportunity to use driver; the driver I hit here was just the second of the day. A bunker cuts into the fairway about 50 yards short of the green, but unless you're a professional golfer or close to it, you really don't have to worry about it on the drive. Far more people hit into on their second or third shots, I suspect. If you hit a good drive, the second shot will be a little wedge to a small green tilted noticeably from right to left. No bunkers around this green, though the left side is quite slippery and golf balls will easily run off. Overall, I think it's a decent finishing hole.

The blind tee shot on 18.

The eighteenth green.

Walnut Lane may only possess two-thirds the length of your standard 18-hole golf course, but don't let that deceive you into thinking there's nothing of interest here. The lack of length certainly does hold it back, but that doesn't stop holes like the fifth, ninth, tenth, and twelfth from being genuinely good holes. Plenty of golf courses don't come close to Walnut Lane in terms of strategic interest. And most golf courses don't have a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant (the equivalent of a Michelin star for restaurants people can actually afford to go to) literally a block away. Dalessandro's is a cheesesteak staple, and a round at Walnut Lane feels incomplete without indulging in a Philadelphia classic.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the drawbacks to Walnut Lane. The weekend walking rate is over $50, and that's kind of a lot for a par 62 golf course that's in typical municipal playing condition. Plus, while its great that such a beginner-friendly golf course exists in Philadelphia for all to enjoy, it does mean that Walnut Lane attracts a wide and ample crowd. I played on a day after a big rain, with no carts allowed on the course. I figured that would make for a recently quick round. No, it took nearly 4.5 hours to finish. And for this course? That's simply not acceptable or any fun at all. 

So then, what's the final verdict? Walnut Lane is a fun course, and if I were guaranteed a 3-hour round, I'd happily play it again. But I just don't see a world where that can practically happen. Which is unfortunate, seeing as it's less than a mile away. I'd play with friends if they wanted, but I wouldn't come here on my own again.